Chapter 72
Chapter 72
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 72
Chapter Title: A Glimpse of the Sole God's Past
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'Lord Igugwoden……?!'
No matter how much he'd taken on the form of a boy, Eirene could recognize him at a glance.
No one else could possibly know, but she had no choice but to know.
After all, she was someone who had faced Igugwoden's portrait.
She was the only being who had beheld the divine countenance that not even Saintess Erin had laid eyes upon!
What felt even stranger, however, was the boys' attire.
Igugwoden included, they were all dressed in clothing of a style she'd never seen once in her entire life.
'……Where is this place? Since it's where the youthful Lord Igugwoden resides…… could it be, the realm of the gods……?'
But if it was the gods' realm, the furnishings seemed too unfamiliar, more like the interior of an ordinary building……
Moreover, the boys around Igugwoden didn't give off even a hint of divine aura like him—they just registered as regular people.
Questions piled up in her mind one after another—but for now, it was time to grasp the situation before her eyes.
Eirene cautiously approached the group of boys.
Her footsteps made no sound at all, and only the boys' voices rang vividly in her ears.
From the looks of it, they had no idea she was watching them from there.
"Who the hell are you to act all nice? You that retard's family or something?"
"Hey, didn't you know? That fucker always puts on the good guy act in front of the teachers. He spouted some bullshit last time too."
"Hero complex my ass. Does he play so many games he can't tell reality from fantasy?"
She couldn't fully grasp the situation, but one thing was clear—
Lord Igugwoden was being attacked by a group of boys.
'No……! Lord Igugwoden!'
She tried to make a sound, moving her mouth desperately, but it was no use.
Instinctively, she realized it. All she could do was watch.
At that moment.
The boy Igugwoden shouted back at the others ganging up on him.
"What? Acting nice? Hero complex? Piss off!"
Thwack!
One boy went flying from Igugwoden's fist.
"Ah, you fucking……!"
"It's not that I hate seeing you assholes bitching around! If you wanna act tough, do it where no one's watching! The whole class is right here, and you're pulling this shit?"
"You little shit!"
A boy nearby swung a fist, but Igugwoden spun around, grabbed it—
Thwack!
"Ah, you bastard……! H-Hitting the solar plexus, you fuck!"
"Shut up! Apologize to him, you piece of shit! Apologize!"
Thwack, thwack!
"Ah, okay……! Okay, just stop, you fuck……!"
With that, the ringleader boy surrendered, and Igugwoden's punches finally stopped—
Light gently flooded Eirene's vision—like an opera, the scene shifted in an instant.
And yet, for some reason, she could understand how things played out afterward.
He had clearly used his strength to protect the weak…… but for some reason, the people around Lord Igugwoden began avoiding him, treating him with discomfort.
They seemed to view him as violent, refusing to even engage with him.
Rather than explain himself, Lord Igugwoden simply spent his days in solitude.
No one even thought to listen to what he had to say.
The still-young boy Lord Igugwoden endured his time with brutal loneliness.
Loneliness.
The god's loneliness seeped into Eirene's heart…… but all she could do was watch, powerless.
And then, the scene changed again.
'That boy……'
A small-statured boy crouched crying in front of Igugwoden, who sat resting.
"I…… s-s-sorry…… b-because of the knife."
"What're you sorry for? Those shits are the bad ones. Heard those bastards got hauled to the bullying committee and forcibly transferred? Good riddance."
"I-I'm okay now…… but you, because you took my side, your friends……"
"Friends? Fuck that, I'd rather bite my tongue and die than be friends with those assholes. Besides, I'm transferring next week anyway. I switch schools so much, I don't need friends."
"R-Really……?"
"Yeah. And like I said a million times, I didn't do it for you, just……"
He scratched his head awkwardly, letting out a short sigh—
"Just…… I can't stand seeing shit like that. Bullying the weak…… I hate it."
"U-Ughhh……."
"So don't thank me too much. Honestly, it wasn't 'cause I was worried about you. Just those assholes pissed me off. And……"
"It's not your fault for stuttering or forgetting stuff when everyone's injured. The real fuck-up is those shitheads ganging up like a herd and pulling that crap."
"Uwaaaah……."
"No, I said don't cry…… Tsk. Whatever. Just cry it out. Ha, what the hell am I gonna tell the kids tomorrow?"
Igugwoden said that, then looked up at the sky and muttered.
"What the hell's God doing? Not taking assholes like that."
'!!!'
Eirene's eyes widened in shock at those words—
* * *
She jolted upright.
"……!"
Coming to her senses, she found herself sitting on her bed.
Eirene looked around. It was the emperor's bedroom, prepared for her.
Outside, the sun was just beginning to peek over the horizon.
'……A dream?'
She knew it was a dream. Even while dreaming, she'd been somewhat aware it was one.
Normally, people don't realize they're dreaming—that made this all the more extraordinary.
Eirene spread her hands. They weren't translucent. She was back in reality.
That part was crucial.
It didn't feel like waking from a dream—it was as if she'd been sent somewhere and returned to reality.
She sat blankly for a moment—
Then rose, sat at the table in her negligee, and dipped the quill in ink.
Right away, she began jotting down what she'd seen in the dream while her memory was fresh.
Scritch, scritch.
As the quill scraped the paper, what had been mere imagery in her mind began unfolding into reality.
[When I opened my eyes, a place unlike any in this world appeared. (Could it be the landscape of the heavens where the gods reside, beyond this world?)]
[The Holy Scripture makes no mention of it. (The Holy Scripture records the moment Lord Igugwoden became a god. =His form before becoming a god?)]
[I met Lord Igugwoden as a boy. (I recognized him instantly! He was so cute.)]
[Lord Igugwoden was quarreling with other boys. (Were the other boys other gods?)]
'No.'
Eirene crossed out 'other gods' and wrote anew: 'Lord Igugwoden is the Sole God, so no other gods can exist.'
[Presumed he saved someone. The noble figure of Lord Igugwoden who saved me at the monastery was just the same even in his youth. (I love Lord Igugwoden so much.)]
[Unknown words appeared in the divine words. Not in the Holy Scripture either. (Related to the unfamiliar attire I saw?)]
[At the end, Lord Igugwoden made a remark along the lines of 'What is God doing?']
Yes.
In truth, that final line was the most important.
Lord Igugwoden was the Sole God, an indisputable 'truth' recorded even in the Holy Scripture.
Yet hearing that made it seem like some other 'god' existed above him…… complicating her heart for a moment.
'Unnecessary thoughts.'
If Lord Igugwoden weren't a god, how could she still feel his divine love right now?
How to explain the Plain Fact of the divine?
Rather than dare doubt the god, it was far more productive to wonder why she'd had such a dream.
'What could this dream mean……?'
Being a dream, it was highly likely just some meaningless fantasy.
But the sight of the young boy Lord Igugwoden.
The loneliness he had to bear alone at such a young age.
Those clear eyes that protected someone without wanting anything in return—it didn't feel like some empty delusion.
Then was the dream a revelation sent down by the god?
'…….'
Having organized the dream's contents, she pursed her pink lips and let out a short sigh.
That figure advancing on the path he believed right, even if no one acknowledged him.
His constant practice of Plain Fact made her heart flutter once more.
If time allowed, she could analyze the dream calmly—but regrettably, she was the empress.
Just like yesterday, today, and tomorrow—mountains of tasks only she could handle awaited.
Eirene neatly folded the paper and placed it in a drawer.
Then, she closed her eyes and recalled the words of Lord Igugwoden she could never forget.
—Someday, when the god manifests in this world…… we'll meet again.
'Lord Igugwoden…….'
Yes.
What need was there to know precisely? Everything could be asked directly when they met.
At least Eirene had never once doubted that the god would one day appear before her eyes.
She clasped her hands and closed her eyes.
And…… conveyed the feelings toward the god piled up so high they threatened to spill over.
'If what you wished to show me was your loneliness…… I will embrace it all.'
'So…… you must, must come. I, your Eirene, will wait for you forever.'
Eirene's sole wish—to connect deeply with God Igugwoden.
That longing was so intense and pure that it reached places a created being like Eirene could never glimpse.
* * *
'…….'
The Observer gazed down at the world with a grave expression.
The space's gaze turned instantly toward her.
—What is it?
"……I sent Divine Power to Eirene."
—Divine Power fulfills the recipient's desires. I merely acted according to the god's will—what's the problem?
"See for yourself."
Rather than reply, the Observer shared the world she'd observed.
And…… after some time passed.
—It seems unobservable.
Indeed.
Even the Observers couldn't properly observe what Eirene had experienced.
As if shrouded in thick clouds.
The only certainties: Eirene had fallen asleep, dreamed something unknowable, and upon waking, offered prayer to the god.
"Yes. Something a lesser being like Eirene can see, but we Observers cannot confirm."
—Is that why you're rattled?
"Yeah."
An event unprecedented since observation began.
Though it hadn't gained life, it was still an unparalleled situation—she fell silent briefly, perhaps flustered—
Then, as if resolving something, she spoke curtly.
—Eirene's longing is to connect more deeply than anyone with the god.
Hearing that, the Observer slowly rose from her seat.
Gazing down at the world…… she stated an unbelievable truth.
"Eirene's desire to connect with Lord Igugwoden…… has reached the divine domain, a realm even we cannot recklessly trespass."
The 7,000-won Divine Power held immense potential—
But it was laughably insufficient to peek into the god's domain.
Achieving that proved just how profound Eirene's devotion to the god was.
A situation nothing short of miraculous!
It was certainly disconcerting—
—But the god's words carry life in themselves. You haven't forgotten, have you?
"Yeah."
—The god's fragment is part of the god. It's merely that the inevitable draws nearer, bit by bit.
Once spoken from the god's mouth, the god's descent was inevitable.
When that moment came, Eirene's longing would serve as one of the key triggers to summon the god.
The Observer thought slowly.
Having received the power, she had to show Lord Igugwoden at least some change in Eirene through it.
She absolutely couldn't just show the raw result of 'peeking into the god's domain'—something that would unsettle the god.
What if the god sensed something off and stopped sponsoring?
—What do you plan to do?
The Observer pondered briefly…… then glanced to the side.
There remained a fragment of the Divine Power she'd saved to consume.
Staring at it for a long while, she carefully moved her lips, crafted by the god's love.
"……I'll do what I can."